Day three goes to Brooklyn, New York. While writing these I realized I could write about dozens of defining food moments during my time in New York. Kayla’s 27th birthday weekend alone– a true food extravaganza– included four of the most delicious meals I’ve ever had. Perhaps, I will write these vignettes next.

As many bagels as I’ve eaten, I really struggled finding any photos of them. This goes to show how eager I was to dig in– I didn’t even take the time to snap a pic! Instead, here are some pictures from Kayla’s birthday weekend. I really do have to write about these meals…

This past semester I completed a “food writing” course at Milwaukee Institute of Art and Design. For my final project I created a book that illustrates the most influential cities in my life and the dishes that represent each place. Each page describes how these places have influenced my palate. Some dishes taught my tongue a new taste, while others strengthened relationships or created traditions. But what they all have in common is their strong influence over who I am today. They hold a nostalgic presence– each page revealing a new food experience– dishes working together to collectively define me. Flipping through the pages begins to outline my own foodways– what I eat and how that’s influenced by where I’ve been.

It’s my intention that if you are familiar with the dishes, your own food memories flood into mind when viewing this piece. If you are unfamiliar, I hope you will be enticed to try something new. I strive to bring forward nostalgic notes while tempting taste buds. These pages will reveal a bit about myself, but I also hope to provide a mirror for you to reflect on your own food journey– to begin imagining the dishes that define you.

I have decided to share a few pages of the book on here– in lieu of travel posts since we are all stuck at home these days. In celebration of my last week of classes at MIAD, I am starting with Milwaukee, Wisconsin! Hope you all enjoy, and I’m looking forward to sharing more of the book!

Since my mom has work projects in Hawaii, she makes it over to Oahu frequently. She often takes friends and family along with her on these work trips, and I was one of the only people that hadn’t been to Hawaii with her yet. Last December we took a family trip to Hawaii before the holidays, and I finally got my Hawaii experience.

The trip was filled with good food and tropical cocktails. We ended most every night at our favorite beach bar, The Barefoot Bar. Although we didn’t keep an exact count, I’m confident we had over 20 Tropical Itches– a MaiTai-esque cocktail served with a bamboo back scratcher. Kayla’s coworker recommended a must-go Poke place called Ahi Assassins, and it didn’t disappoint. Its sketchy motel-like exterior only added to the experience. It was by far, the best tasting Poke I have ever had. We also had excellent Shabu Shabu, a Japanese hot pot dish with thinly sliced meat, and veggies dipped in hot broth.

Since it was both Lars’ and my first time on the island, we hiked up Diamond Head, one of the popular tourist hikes of Oahu.

My favorite part of the trip was snorkeling at both Hanauma Bay and Paradise Cove. I hadn’t been snorkeling since our trip to Thailand back in 2005. I enjoyed it more than I had expected to. Within the first 30 seconds of being under the water in Paradise Cove, a sea turtle swam right up to me.

A sea turtle nearly bumped me on the nose!

The rest of our trip was spent hanging on the beach, walking along Waikiki, and soaking up the sun.